The BRS conventions

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The Basel Convention does not stand alone. Two further treaties deal with hazardous chemicals. The Rotterdam Convention of 1998 on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade, in force since 2004, requires exporters of listed chemicals to obtain the consent of importing countries. The Stockholm Convention of 2001 on Persistent Organic Pollutants, also in force since 2004, obliges parties to eliminate or restrict the production and use of the most dangerous long-lived chemicals. Together with the Basel Convention, these treaties regulate the life cycle of hazardous substances from production through trade to disposal.¹

Since about 2012 the three conventions have shared a joint secretariat, known as the BRS Secretariat, with offices in Geneva and, for parts of the Rotterdam Convention, in Rome at the Food and Agriculture Organization. Their Conferences of the Parties meet back to back in what is called the "Triple COP", a practice that began in 2013. The arrangement was the result of a so-called synergies process launched in the late 2000s to reduce costs and improve coordination. The joint secretariat strengthened the position of Geneva as the centre of international environmental governance. For Basel, it confirmed that the city's name had become a label used in Geneva and elsewhere without any institutional anchor in the city itself.²

Notes

1. On the Rotterdam Convention of 10 September 1998 (in force 24 February 2004) and the Stockholm Convention of 22 May 2001 (in force 17 May 2004), see the texts of the Conventions and the documents of the joint Secretariat. Dates to be verified. ↩
2. On the synergies process among the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions, the joint BRS Secretariat (Geneva and Rome) and the joint meetings of the Conferences of the Parties since 2013, see the decisions on synergies adopted by the three Conferences of the Parties and the documents of the BRS Secretariat. Dates to be verified. ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of August 2025.